Photographic view-finder.



No. 704,379. Patented July 8, I902. J. A. ROBERTSON & C. E. HUTCHINGS. PHOTOGRAPHIC VIEW FINDER.

(Application filed Mar. 13, 1902.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN A. ROBERTSON AND CHARLES E. HUTCHINGS, OF ROCHESTER, NEIV YORK, ASSIGNORS TO ROCHESTER OPTICAL AND CAMERA COMPANY, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NE\V YORK.

PHOTOGRAPHIG VIEW-FINDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 704,379, dated July 8, 1902.

Application filed March 13,1902. Serial No. 98,108. (No model.)

To Wham it y 607L067? by the reflector, ahinged hood being provided Be it known that we, JOHN A. ROBERTSON for shielding the magnifying-lens from light, and CHARLES E. HUTCHINGS, citizens of the as usual. The said casing consists of two United States, residing at Rochester, in the parts, each consisting of a single integral county ofMonroe and State of New York, have piece of metal stamped or bent into shape and invented new and useful Improvements in comprising a body portion 1 and a cap or Photographic View-Finders, of which the folcover 2, constructed in the manner which we lowing is a specification. will now describe.

This invention relates to view-finders for In forming the body portion 1 we first make I0 photographic cameras, and has for its object a blank of the shape shown in Fig. 3 of the to provide a device of the character referred drawings and consisting ofa thin piece of sheet to which will comprisebut few parts that are metal comprising a rectangular portion 3, capable of being rapidly and easily assemprovided on each of its sides with a wing 4 bled togetherand which maybe manufactured and at one end with a rectangular extension :5 at small cost. It also has for its object to 5. The wings 4 are bent up at right angles provide improved means for connecting the to the body portion 3 along the dotted lines 6, finder to its support in such manner that it and the rectangular extension 5 is bent up at will be securely held in place in its two adan angle of forty-five degrees to the portion justed positions. 3 along the dotted line 7 and in such man- 20 To these ends ourinvention consistsin the nor as to abut against the edges 8 of the features and in the construction, combinawings 4. The rectangular portion 3 of the tion, and arrangement of parts hereinafter blankwhen thus bent up into shape forms described and particularly pointed out in the the rear of the finder-casing, which, as will claims following the description, reference behereinafter appear, is inclined at an angle of 25 inghad to the accompanying drawings,whereforty-five degrees to a horizontal plane, the infront portion 5 standing vertically. The op- Figure 1 is a perspective view of our imposite side end portions of the rectangular proved finder, showing the same in position extension 5 are provided with rectangular refor use. Fig.2 is a similar View of the body cesses 9, and the ends of the wings 4 are progo portion of the finder-casing. Fig. 3 is aplan vided with correspondingly sized and shaped View of the blank on which the body portion tongues 10, which when the blank is bent up of the casing is formed. Fig. 4 is a vertical into shape enter the recesses 9 and prevent longitudinal sectional View of the finder and the sides of the casing, composed by the wings its support. Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken 4, from being bent inward or from collapsing.

35 on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4. Figs. 6 and 7 are The edges of the wings 4, which form the top rear views of the finder and its support, showof the casing when the blank is bent up into ing the finder in two different positions. Fig. shape, are provided near their opposite ends 8 is a detail perspective view of the cap or with upwardly-projecting tongues 11, and cover of the finder, and Fig. 9 is a similar said edges of the wings between said tongues 0 view of the spring employed for holding the are concaved for the purpose hereinafter ex- 0 reflector in position. plained. When the blank has been bent up Our improved finder consists, broadly, of a into shape, as described, it forms a hollow hollow casing having the general, shape of a casing having the general form of a rightright-angled prism in the front of which is angled prism, as most clearly shown in Fig. l

45 fitted an object-lens, and in the rear of which of the drawings. In the front 5 of the casing 5 lens is arranged at an angle of forty-five deis formed a circular aperture 13, in which is grees a reflecting-mirror, and in the top of fitted a short lens-tube 14, which will be more said casing is arranged the magnifying-lens, fully hereinafter described. The rectanguwhich operates, as usua1,to magnify the image l'ar portion 3 of the casing, as before stated,

50 of the view cast upon and reflected upwardly is inclined when in place at an angle of forty- I00 6 5 finder-casing.

five degrees to a horizontal plane and forms a support or rest for the reflecting-mirror 15, which rests thereagainst and is held in place by a spring 10. Said spring is conveniently "formed of a piece of resilient Wire, which is first bent into U shape, and its looped end is then bent over at an angle of about forty-five degrees to its parallel members. The looped portion 17 bears against the inner side of the vertical front portion 5 of the casing and encircles the lens-tube l-i, so as not to obstruct the passage of the light-rays through the latter, while its parallel members 18 bear against the edges of the reflecting-mirror and hold the latter to its seat on the inclined portion 3 of the casing. The cap 2 is formed from a rectangular piece of sheet metal which is stamped up into dish shapethat is to say, it is so stamped up that its body or top portion will be arched, as indicated at 19, and will have depending flanges 20 on its four sides, as shown. The arched portion 19 of the cap is apertured, as at 29, and fitted in said cap is a magnifying-lens 22, the arched formation of the top of the cap forming a seat for the curved top of the lens. As shown, the lens is somewhat shorter than the cap, and when the cap is fitted over the top of the body portion 1 the curved under side of said lens is seated upon the concaved portions 12 of the wing 4, before described, and the tongues 11 project into said cap between the ends of the latter and the ends of the lens and hold the lens accurately centered beneath the aperlure 21. The lens 22 is thus securely, immovably, and accurately held in place, and ihe cap also serves to hold the sides and ends of the body portion of the casing closely in place.

The numeral 23 indicates a hood which is pivot-ally connected to the cap 2 by a pin 2a, which passes through suitable perforations formed in said hood and in the forward ends of the side portions of the cap. This hoodis of usual and well-known construction and is for the purpose of shading the magnifyinglens from the direct rays of light and need not be described in detail. Secured near the upper end of the rear portion 3 of the body 1 is a bracket 25, which consists of a metallic plate bent intermediate its ends at an angle of forty-five degrees to provide an attaching portion 26 and a hinged sleeve 27. The attaching portion 26 rests against the rear side of the back portion 3 of the bodyof the finder and is secured thereto by tangs or prongs 2S, struck up from the back 3 by forming V- shaped incisions therein, as shown, said tangs or prongs being first bent up at a right angle to the back 3, then passed through the incisions or slits 29, formed in the attaching portion 26, and then finally bent or clenched down upon the portion 26, thus firmly and rigidly securing the attaching-bracket to the Attached to any suitable part of the camera is a bracket-arm 30, consisting of a flat metallic plate provided with a screw hole 31, which when the attaching-bracket of the finder is secured to said bracket-arm registers with a corresponding screw -hole 32, formed in the portion 27 of said attachingbracket. The attachirig-bracket rests against the rear side of the bracket-arm 30 and is pivotally secured to the latter by a screw 33, which passes through the screw-holes 31 and 32. A spring 34 is coiled intermediate its ends about a pin or projection 35 on the rear side of the bracket-arm 30 and bears at one end against a pin or projection 30 and at its other end against the attaching-bracket 25. As most clearly shown in Figs. (5 and 7 of the drawings, the vertical depending portion 27 ot' the attaching-bracket 25 is V-shaped, or, in other words, its two opposite sides are formed at right angles to each other, and when the finder-casing is secured in place to the-bracket-arm 30 the free end of the spring 34 will bear against one or the other of said V- shaped sides, according to whether the finder be turned to a horizontal or vertical position, and will operate to hold the finder in either of said positions, the inner edge of the attaching-plate 26 at such times abutting against either the edge 4-1 or 12 of the bracket-arm 30. Fitted in the aperture 13 of the vertical front portion 5 of the finder-casing is a lens-tube consisting of a small metallic cylinder or tube, one end of which is reduced, as at 37, said reduced end being fitted in the aperture 13 and expanded orspread therein, so as to firmly hold the lens-tube in place. Said lens-tube near its other or outer end is provided with a shoulder 38, against which is seated the objective 39, and the latter is secured in place against said seat by spinning the outer end of said tube against the objective, as indicated by the numeral 40.

By securing the view-finder casing to the bracketarm 30 in the manner described it will be obvious that said finder may be turned either to a horizontal or a Vertical position, and when turned to either of said positions the finder will be held fixed by the free end of the spring 34 hearing against one or the other of the V-shaped sides of the attachingbracket 25. The bracket-arm 30 may be attached to any convenient part of the camera, provided the axis of the objective 39 be coincident with the axis of the camera-lens.

Having described our invention What we claim is 1. A view-finder casing, comprising a body portion consisting of an integral piece of sheet metal bent up into substantially a right-angular prismatic shape, a flanged cap fitted over the upper open end of said body portion, an objective fitted in the vertical front por tion of said casing, a reflector fitted in the rear inclined portion thereof, and a magnifying-lens fitted in the said cap, substantially as described.

2. In aview-findercasing,comprisingabody portion consisting of an angular piece of sheet metal bent up into substantially a right-angular prismatic shape and having fitted in its front portion an objective, and in its rear inclined portion a reflector, a spring fitted within said casing and holding said reflector to its seat, a cap fitted over the upper open por tion of the body of the casing and a magnifying-lens fitted within said cap, substantially as described.

3. In a view-finder, the combination with a casing comprising a body portion formed of an integral piece of sheet metal bent up into substantially right-angular prismatic shape and having fitted in its front vertical portion an objective, a reflector seated against the rear inclined portion of the casing, a spring for holding said reflector to its seat and consisting of a resilient wire bent intermediate its ends to encircle the objective and resting against the vertical front side of the casing, and terminating in parallel rearwardly-inclined arms that bear against the edges of the reflector, and a cap fitted over the upper open end of said casing and provided With a magnifying-lens, substantially as described.

l. In aview-finder, a casing comprising a body portion consisting of an integralpiece of sheet metal bent up into substantially a rightangular prismatic form and provided in its front vertical edge with an objective, and in its rear inclined portion With a reflector, of a flanged cap fitted over the upper, open end of said casing, and a lens fitted within said cap and resting on the opposite upper side edges of the casing, substantially as described.

5. In a view-finder, a casing comprising an integral piece of sheet metal bent up into substantially a right-angular prismatic form,and having an objective fitted in its vertical front face, and a reflector against its rear inclined face, the opposite upper side edges of said casing being concaved, of a flanged arch shaped apertured cap fitted over the upper open end of said casing, and a lens fitted within said cap and resting on said concaved edges, substantially as described.

6.. In a view-finder, a casing comprising an integral piece of sheet metal bent up into substantially a right-angularprismatic form,and having an objective fitted in its vertical front face, and a reflector against its rear inclined face, the opposite upper side edges of said casing being provided with upwardly-projecting tongues, a lens resting on said upper edges between said tongues, and a flanged cap fitted over the upper open end of said casing, substantially as described.

7. In a view-finder casing, the combination with a bracket-arm adapted to be secured to a camera, of a viewfinder provided with an attaching-bracket pivoted to said bracketarms, said attaching-bracket having a V- shaped extension, and a spring supported on said bracket-arm and arranged. at its free end to bear against either of the sides of said V- shaped extension to hold the finder in either a vertical or a horizontal position, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands in presence of two subscribing wit" nesses.

JOHN A. ROBERTSON. CHAS. E. HUTCHINGS.

Witnesses:

MINNA STULL, GEO. W. REILLY. 

